Paperweight
by QueenOfPromise
Summary: "It's funny," she says with a sigh, turning her head away from him to look up at the stars again. "Before Katherine turned me the thing I was most scared of was dying. I thought being immortal and all would change that. But it hasn't. Death still terrifies me. Not because I might die. It's because I know I'll have to watch all the people I love die first."
1. Chapter 1

__**AN: So this is my first Vampire Diaries Fan fiction. Any and all feedback is welcome. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Dairies or the characters. Just this plot. **

_Nobody said it was easy  
It's such a shame for us to part  
Nobody said it was easy  
No one ever said it would be this hard  
Oh, take me back to the start_

_**The Scientist - Coldplay**_

The window seat in the corner of her bedroom has always been Caroline's favourite thing about her house. It's witnessed a thousand important moments in her life. It held her night after night as she watched and waited for her father to come back, to realise leaving Caroline and her mother was a mistake all those years ago. It was where she had her first kiss with Kyle Roberts in 7th grade. It was where she spent countless nights looking up at the stars, feeling incredibly small and humble in there dim light.

And now it was where Tyler sat, his shoulders hunched hands in on his knees as he said all the usual things. It's not you it's me. I hope we can still be friends. I really did love you. I'm sorry. Her body feels number than usual as she whispers for him to "Go, just go." Everything she'd ever done for him. Ever felt for him. Gone. Wasted.

She waits until she hears the gate close quietly before she collapses onto it, her body shaking in huge, uncontrollable sobs. It's where Elena finds her, hours later. She's no longer crying. She's sitting up and watching the stars, her face emotionless.

"Caroline," she says quietly. "I'm so sorry. I know how much you loved him."

Caroline remains quiet for a moment before she turns to Elena with a sad smile, not believing the words that come tumbling out of her mouth as a way of appeasing her worried friend. "It's ok, 'Lena. Everything happens for a reason."

* * *

She doesn't sleep much that night so she's tired as she packs her book bag for her first day of community college. Community college. It sounds ridiculous, even to her. The fact that Caroline Forbes, straight A student, head cheerleader and Miss Mystic falls, was headed to community college a block away from her high school was the talk of the town.

After graduation though, her, Bonnie and Elena had sat down and decided together that staying in Mystic Falls for the time being was what was best for the town. Klaus and Rebekah were still living in the Mikaelson mansion and although summer had passed with only a few incidents, they'd decided to stick around for a while longer, just to make sure. So here she was, giving up yet another of her dreams for the sake of the town.

Her mother was both grateful as the Sheriff for ensuring the town was protected for another year and disappointed as a mother that Caroline's dreams of an Ivy League tertiary education hadn't come to fruition.

After her bag is packed and she dresses she descends the stairs into the quiet emptiness of her house. Another first her mother isn't here for, she thinks bitterly for a second before she shakes her head and grabs her keys, slamming the door behind her.

The drive to Mystic Falls Community College takes all of ten minutes and before she knows it Caroline has parked, pulled out her schedule and by some miracle found her first class. She was an undecided major, taking a handful of different classes to see which ones she liked the best. She figured she had an eternity to figure out what she wanted to study anyway.

Walking into the lecture hall she found a seat in the middle of the room, pulled out her notebook and her pen and was looking around at the other students in the room. All of them looked just about as tired as she felt as they shuffled into seats at the back of the hall. She could hear a dozen conversations at once, her mind buzzing as she tried to block out the noise like Stefan had taught her back when she first turned.

Suddenly the lights flickered, dimming just enough to capture everyone's attention as the lecturer stepped up to the podium at the front of the room.

"Welcome, everyone," he began. "I am Professor Richard Hoffman and I'd like to thank you for choosing to study Ancient History with me this semester. Now, as I'm sure you all would of read in the syllabus you were provided at orientation last week I will run this class with a co-professor who will run half of these lectures and we'll split the class in half for the workshops."

Caroline felt her mind drifting already, the professors dreary accent making the fog clouding her brain deepen. She barely heard anything else the man said until he ended his little speech with "so please welcome Professor Niklaus Mikaelson."

_What. The. Hell._

* * *

"I'm serious Elena! He's here! He's a professor! My professor!" Caroline is screeching into her cell phone ten minutes later.

"Alright, calm down Caroline," Elena says. "I'll call Stefan and Damon and see if they know anything about this. Just go back in there and act like everything's fine. Don't let him see you're riled up. It's what he wants."

"But-"Caroline starts to protest before she hears the dial tone. With a sigh she shoves her phone back into her jean pocket. Great. Now's she's stuck in a class with the oldest vampire in history as her Professor. That shouldn't present any problems now should it?

Slinking back into the lecture hall she wishes she'd chosen a seat up the back like most of the class, feeling several pairs of eyes on her as she makes her way down the aisle. She keeps her eyes trained on a point above Klaus' head, refusing to look at him as she sits back down in her seat.

After what seems like an eternity, the class is over and Caroline shoves her papers haphazardly into her bag resisting the urge to use her vampire speed to exit the hall. The sunlight hits her eyes and she sighs, looking at her schedule for the rest of the day. A two hour break now, followed by two back to back classes afterwards. She considers going home and sleeping but her mind wanders to the papers in her bag and she sighs again. No point in getting behind on her first day.

The library is almost empty so it's easy to find a table hidden in the shelves. Quietly she gets out her papers and sorts them into the correct order, smoothing them down and returning them to her folder neatly before starting to copy down notes from the lecture slides she's printed off last night.

She gets halfway through the lecture before she hears him coming. Caroline tenses and rereads one sentence about a hundred times before he sits down at the table across from her.

"Hello, Caroline," his voice is like velvet and like always, no matter how many times she reminds herself of all the evil he's down to her and her friends, she feels herself repress the shiver that threatens to run up her spine.

She can almost feel him smirk as she refuses to acknowledge him. Her grip so tight on her pen that she feels the plastic buckle, a shard of it digging into her finger.

"Ouch," she mummers unintentionally, releasing the pen and surveying the damage. A few drops of blood are trickling down her thumb, the plastic wedged in there somewhat painfully. Before she can make a move to get it out herself her hand is in his and he gently pulls the plastic out, swiping the blood away with his own thumb.

The wound heals before her eyes and she finally looks up at him, pulling her hand from his. "Thank you," she says tightly, picking up the broken pen and looking around for a bin to discard it in.

"You're welcome," he replies nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders.

She finds a bin, hops up and prays to God that when she gets back to her seat he will have given up.

He hasn't, of course. He's lounging in the seat across from hers, wearing that infuriating smirk of his. "Come now, Caroline," he says quietly. "Is this how you treat all of your professors?"

She tries to bite back a rude retort, but she's tired and crabby and he's just so goddamn persistent that she snaps "Not all my professors are homicidal maniacs that just happen to be thousand year old Original Vampires that take more effort than they're worth to kill."

A flicker of something passes over his face so quickly that if she wasn't a vampire herself she probably wouldn't have caught it. "Don't hold back love, tell me how you really feel," he mummers sarcastically before looking up at her, his face scarily blankly. "See you in class, Caroline."


	2. Chapter 2

__**AN: Just wanted to thank everyone for their comments on the last chapter. I was very surprised to receive so much! Not sure about this chapter. I hope I stayed true to the characters somewhat while trying to showcase some of the changes happening. Anyway, all feed back is welcome. It will be a few days before I upload the next chapter though, so enjoy! PS: If anyone is interested in being a Beta for this story please let me know via review, PM, etc. My punctuation is atrocious, I know and I could really use someone to bounce ideas/plot lines off. Thanks!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries. Obviously. **

_Numb is the new deep  
Done with the old me  
I'm over the analysing  
Tonight _

_**New Deep – John Mayer**_

"I need another drink," Caroline murmured later that night as she, Bonnie, Elena, Damon and Stefan had dinner at the Grill.

"Slow down, Blondie. You know what happens when you forget to pace yourself." Damon drawled, swirling his own drink around in the glass before taking a sip, smirking at her over the rim of the glass.

She shot Damon a look before snatching it away and finishing the drink off. He can be such a little bitch sometimes. "How am I the only one freaking out about this?" she repeated for the millionth time that evening.

"Klaus swears he's not up to anything," Elena says calmly. So calmly that Caroline stares at her as if she's grown a second head.

"And you believe him?" Caroline didn't care that her voice was becoming more and more shrill. "After everything he's done to us? To _you_?"

"I don't know Caroline," Elena sighed. "But nothing's happened the past few months to suggest he is."

"Stefan?" Caroline asks, looking desperately at the younger Salvatore.

"I don't like it," Stefan says slowly, glancing at Elena. "But we'd be idiots to start something over nothing. And I can't see what he'd gain by doing this."

"Well I don't buy it," Caroline said stubbornly, standing up and pushing back her chair. "He's up to something."

She throws some money on the table and turns on her heal, stalking away from her friends in disbelief.

* * *

"A _history professor _Niklaus? Really?" Rebekah's tone is so full of disgust his hand itches to throw the Persian vase on the sideboard by him at her head.

"Yes, Rebekah. A history professor," Klaus repeated with a sigh, sinking down onto the couch and massaging his temples. Where's a White Oak Ash Dagger when you need one?

"Brother, I have stood by why you've protected this town all summer but _this?_ This really is taking it too far."

"Calm down Rebekah!" Klaus said harshly, seeing Rebekah's lips curl in annoyance. "You will not bring this up again, just as I will not bring up you repeating your senior year for some boy. What would Mother say? You throwing yourself at every available human in Mystic Falls."

"How dare you act all high and mighty, Niklaus?" Rebekah snapped. "I'm not stupid, despite what you may think. I can see what this is really about! Caroline is not interested! She has made that clear numerous times yet you continue to make a fool of yourself!"

With speed only a hybrid could be capable of, Klaus had Rebekah up against the living room wall, arm against her throat. "I warn you, sister. Watch. Your. Tongue."

With a snarl, Rebekah pushed him off and vanished from the room. He could hear her slamming around in her wing of the house, no doubt wishing she had not agreed to stay in Mystic Fall with him for another year.

Their fighting had been worse since he'd made her swear not to feed of any of Mystic Falls permanent residents, meaning they had to travel to the surrounding towns to find their meals. Well she would just have to deal with that. He certainly wasn't budging on the matter.

His angry thoughts were interrupted by the doorbell ringing and he sighed, straightening his clothes as he stalked towards the door.

"Caroline!" he said, his eyebrows rising in surprise. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Oh save it," Caroline rolled her eyes, pushing past him into the entrance hall, just as Rebekah sped down the stairs.

"Speak of the devil and she shall appear," Rebekah spat before disappearing out the door, slamming it shut behind her.

"What's her problem?" Caroline wondered, listening as her car roared down the driveway at an alarming speed.

"Oh we've had another one of our infamous spats," Klaus said offhandedly, offering his arm to Caroline. "Can I interest you in a drink?"

Reluctantly, Caroline allowed herself to be led into a room of the Mikaelson mansion she'd never seen before. It was a decent size, with a large desk in the middle of the room and bookshelves lining every inch of the walls.

"My study," Klaus answered her silent question. "I keep the good alcohol here. Away from Rebekah."

She couldn't help the snicker that escaped and Klaus turned away to hide his small smile. "What can I help you with, Caroline?" he repeated, handing her a glass.

She took a long sip, swallowed and winced. "I'm not here to play nice with you, Klaus," she began. Nothing like getting straight to the point, she figured. "You may have the others convinced but I'm calling bullshit. A professor? Really?"

"Ah," Klaus replied, taking a swig of his own drink. "And here I was thinking this was a social call. Is it really that hard for you to believe that I do not have some sort of ulterior motive for wanting to do something other than sit around this place all day every day?"

"Yes," Caroline said stubbornly, jutting her chin out. "People don't change. They don't suddenly decide to make an honest living after spending a thousand years doing the exact opposite."

It was Klaus' turn to raise his eyebrows, "This coming from you, Caroline? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black."

"I don't know what you mean."

"When I first came to Mystic Falls, Caroline you were as weak as you are strong now. Ah- don't interrupt, hear me out," Klaus said, raising a hand when he saw her mouth fly open to rebut him.

"It was one of the things that drew me to you. You relied on the Salvatore brothers and your friends to make the decisions for you. You listened to what they had to say and acted on their advice even when you very clearly disagreed. Now however, well, I hardly think Damon and Stefan let alone the lovely Elena would allow you to waltz into my house, unaccompanied and accuse me of having some sort of master plan while drinking from my personal collection."

Caroline was silent as she took in his little talk, speechless. "I don't think I've ever seen you so quiet," he prodded after a moment, refilling his glass.

"Yeah, well I hadn't thought about it that way before." she choked out eventually.

"You really do give yourself far less credit than you deserve, Caroline," he said pointedly looking at her with raised eyebrows.

Had she been able to blush she certainly would of right then. His eyes were dark with some untold emotion as he stared unblinkingly at her, as if searching for something lost deep within her eyes. She cleared her throat and placed her drink on the coffee table in front of her.

"So why ancient history then?" she asked, willing the tremor out of her voice as she forced herself to look away from him.

As if a spell had been broken, Klaus blinked and look another sip. "_I am history_, _Caroline._ Every famous moment in history you can think of, I was there for. I have seen it, lived it, and breathed it. Why not share my knowledge and insight with those who are willing to listen? Besides, I was beginning to tire of the inside of this house."

"I don't think I could ever tire of this place,"

Klaus smiled, turning once more so she wouldn't see it. "Think on it, Caroline. From this moment forward you are a part of history too. In a hundred years it will only be our kind who lived when the twin tours fell, when America declared war on terror. To everyone else it will be a picture, a story, a documentary but to us; _we lived it Caroline. _We are a part of history. Nothing can change that."

If he had been anything else and she anyone else she would have kissed him there and then. The passion and fever in his voice when he spoke shook her to the core, moving her on a deeply emotional level.

"Are you ok, Caroline?" Klaus asked after a moment, taking a step towards her.

"Oh, yes. Fine. I was just wondering where Rebekah got too. I should probably leave before she gets back. She seemed to be in a fantastic mood. Wouldn't want to do anything to ruin it for her."

Klaus grimaced, "Ah, I almost forgot. Bekah in one of her moods is almost unbearable."

"What was she in a mood over?" Caroline asked without thinking, regretting the question as soon as she asked it.

Again, the unidentifiable emotion flickered over his face. In an instant it was gone, replaced with a causal shrug and his trademark smirk. "Let's just say she disagrees with my choice of career... And various other choices I've made of late."

Another question was on the tip of her tongue but something stopped her. "Thank you for the drink, Klaus," she said instead, getting to her feet.

"It was my pleasure, Caroline," Klaus drawled, taking her glass and placing it with his on the tray by his desk.

Together they walked to the entrance hall in an unusually comfortable silence. Klaus opened the door and she made a move to step out but he grabbed her hand and pulled it up to his mouth, kissing it gently as he look her unblinkingly in the eye for the second time that night.

"Goodnight, Caroline. Sweet dreams."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Sorry for taking so long to update, everyone. Work has been crazy lately. As always, any and all feedback is welcome. Thank you :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD.**

_When she was just a girl  
She expected the world  
But it flew away from her reach so  
She ran away in her sleep  
And dreamed of  
Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise  
Every time she closed her eyes_

_**Paradise - Coldplay**_

"Where _were _you last night?" Bonnie exclaimed the following morning over coffee on campus. "We called you about a hundred times!"

"Hm? Oh, I just needed to get away. Clear my head." Caroline answered vaguely with a wave of her hand. "How are you finding your classes?"

Bonnie raised her eyebrows, knowing Caroline was changing the subject. "They're good. The lecturers all seem really nice and the assessment load seems manageable. You?"

"Yeah, so far so good," agreed Caroline. "I'm looking forward to joining up for a few clubs or classes though. You know... something to break up all the learning."

"What kind of clubs?" Bonnie prodded.

"I'm not sure yet," Caroline answered. "Maybe art. Or dance. Definitely cheer."

Bonnie smiled. "It's probably a good thing to take your mind of things with Tyler, huh?"

Caroline frowned and took a sip of her coffee. "I guess," she said shrugging. "I haven't actually thought about him today."

Her friend gave her a searching look, another question obviously on the tip of her tongue. "Anyway, I gotta run," Caroline said jumping to her feet. "I don't want to be late for class. Love ya, Bon."

"Love you too, Caroline," Bonnie said, surprised. "See you later."

Caroline picked up her book bag and hurried to her next lecture, taking notes as the lecturer droned on about something or other. She wasn't really paying attention. She left as soon as they were dismissed pulling her cell phone out of her bag and dialling a number.

The warm, cheerful voice she missed so much answered the phone. "Hey,Cara! How are you?"

"Matt! I'm good. I miss you. How's Michigan?"

"It's great, Cara. Really I'm so glad I chose to move out here."

She spoke without thinking, "Aw, me too Matt. At least one of us made it out of this town, hey?"

"You could too, Caroline. You don't have to be stuck in Mystic Falls forever."

"I know, I know."

"Mystic Falls is toxic. It took getting out for me to see it but nothing good ever happens there. To tell you the truth I'm not sure I'll ever come back." He was quiet for a moment, then "Anyway, how's Tyler?"

"He's um… we broke up,"

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't be, Matt. If it was meant to be it would be."

"Look Cara, I'm really sorry but gotta run. I'm gonna be late for class.

"Bye Matty, stay safe."

"You too, Cara. Bye."

Part of her would always love Mystic Falls. She was born here, raised here. It was her home. The Grill, the library, the town square; she knew them all like the back of her hand. She could get around town blindfolded, no problems. But another, bigger, more secretive part of her longed to get away. To leave Mystic Falls like Matt and never, ever have to look back.

* * *

"Five, six, seven, eight," the head cheerleader called as the music started thumping through the gymnasium. "

Caroline's body worked on autopilot, twisting and moving to the steps required for the various stunts they were working on today. She loved cheer, it cleared her mind and it made her body ache deliciously after practice. It was an outlet, a way of escaping the craziness surrounding her life. Even Vampires needed to work out.

By the end of practice she was dripping in sweat. Her hair was damp and messy, her workout clothes hot and sticky. She quickly raced into the change rooms, showered and through back on her street clothes. Caroline was excited about trying out the art classes she's signed up for this semester. She'd had a lot of fun picking up the supplies on the list she'd been given when she joined, making sure her pencil case was organised and everything was where she could find it.

Using a bit of vampire speed she ran to the other side of the campus to the art studios that lined the perimeter on the right side. Glancing at the paper in her hand she quickly found the classroom number and slipped inside the room, choosing an easel at the back.

To her dismay she saw that most of the people in the room were already drawing, obviously given their assignment by the instructor before she'd made it to the room.

"Nice of you to join us, love," Klaus' voice murmured in her ear, making her jump in surprise and shiver at the same time.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed, without turning around. "I thought you were a _history professor _for gods sake?"

"I am a man of many talents, Caroline," he drawled, his voice so quiet she had to strain to hear it, even with her vampire hearing. "As you well know."

This time there was no hiding the shiver as his breath tickled the back of her neck. "We're drawing that vase of flowers in the middle of the room, just the outline. Tomorrow we will work on colouring."

Why had she chosen to join the art club she asked herself as she dug through her pencil case, finding a lead pencil and beginning her sketch? Part of her had no idea what drew her to it. The other part was almost certain it had something to do with the blonde vampire making his way around the room as he commented on his students work, pointing out things here picking up a pencil there.

He came to her last, his cool hand falling on hers and surprising her once again. "Hold the pencil like this, love. See, it gives your lines more definition."

She tenses under his touch and if he notices he pretends not to, instead he tightens his grip a little more, lifting her hands of the paper slightly. "Gently, Caroline. It makes it easier to correct your mistakes."

After he releases her and moves onto the next student it takes her a few seconds to regain her composure and return to her drawing, keeping her grip on the pencil light. She can't help but glance up at him every now and then, watching his interactions with everyone else.

Before she knows it, he's up the front of the room thanking everyone for attending and saying that they are welcome to come back to any of the classes he runs on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights.

Caroline slowly begins to pack up her things, going a little slower than perhaps was necessary until she was the last person in the room. Besides Klaus. He's sitting at the desk, sifting through the pictures, head tilted in concentration.

He looks so calm, she can't help but think. Calmer than she's even seen him, that's for sure. His shoulders are still straight, but she can see they've relaxed. He bites his lip, looking and one picture and she feels this strange flutter in her stomach.

She stands up jerkily, shaking her head as she picks up her bag and turns to leave. "Leaving without saying goodnight, love?"

Of course he's right behind her, his breath on her neck for the second time that night. "I thought you were busy," she says lightly, shaking her head. Caroline Forbes does not get flustered by homicidal original vampires, she told herself sternly. "Sorry."

"Don't be," he says simply. "I was leaving too. Shall I walk you to your car?

She should really say no but for some reason she finds herself nodding and reaching for his arm that she somehow knows will be there.

"I saw you at cheer practice earlier," he confesses.

"Are you stalking me or something?" She scoffs, only half joking. "You're turning up everywhere."

"I could say the same about you," he counters, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Mmm," she says softly, looking away.

They reach her car and she pulls her arm away a little quicker than necessary. She sees that look cross his face again, before it's replaced with his self-assured smirk.

"I'll be seeing you, love," he says quietly, turning towards his own car.

"I'll be seeing you," she repeats softly once he's safely out of earshot .

* * *

Later that night she's hopping out of the shower when she thinks she hears someone opening the door to her room. "Mom?" she calls out. "Is that you?"

There's no answer so she strains to hear again. Nothing. She shrugs, steps out of her towel and into her pyjamas. As she pulls her hair up into a loose bun and steps into her room she can smell him instantly. She shivers, half hoping he's still there.

One look around tells her he's not, the only thing left is a piece of parchment on her bedside table. She opens it slowly, savouring the smell of the paper. Her breath catches in her throat as she looks at the picture. It's a drawing of her, sitting at an easel with a pencil in her hand head on an angle and a small smile on her face as she looks at something beyond the canvas.

She turns it over and sees as couple of sentences in his handwriting. _To the lovely Caroline, They say a picture is worth a thousand words but a picture of you is worth a hundred thousand more. Yours fondly, Klaus. _


	4. Chapter 4

_You make me feel out of my element  
Like I'm drifting out to the sea  
Like the tides pulling me in deeper  
Makin' it harder to breathe  
We cannot deny, how we feel inside  
We cannot deny_

_**Chemicals React – Aly & AJ**_

**Disclaimer: Regretfully, I do not own The Vampire Diaries.**

**AN: So here's chapter four of Paperweight. I'm a little bit nervous about this one to be honest because it takes a little bit of a turn from the tone of the previous chapters. Please feel free to leave any comments or questions in a review and I'll definitely get back to you! **

"It's time to pull out your winter coats ladies and gents because today is going to be a chilly one here in Mystic Falls!"

The radio presenters voice was way to cheerful for Caroline's liking so she slammed the snooze button down a little harder than she normally would have, satisfying silence filling her bedroom once more.

It was gone nine but she had tossed and turned fitfully all night so she felt as if she hadn't slept at all. Klaus' drawing lay on her bedside, so close that all she had to do was roll over to see it. Stubbornly she refused to glance its way, even as she finally roused herself enough to stumble out of bed and into her closet, searching for an outfit for the day.

She settled on a pair of jeans tucked into her favourite high-heeled boots that she matched with a pale blue sweater. Hurriedly she headed to the bathroom, threw her hair up into a loose ponytail and applied enough make-up to hide the bags under her eyes before picking up a jacket and her book bag, slamming her bedroom door and not looking back.

Despite speeding a little on her way there Caroline was fifteen minutes late to her first lecture which set a pattern for the rest of the day. Before her last class of the day she got stuck in a ridiculous line in the ladies room because for some godforsaken reason even vampires had to go.

She hurriedly walked to the workshop, hesitating slightly outside of the door, tempted to skip class and forget today had ever happened but for some unknown reason she turned the handle and silently inched the door open. Before she had even made it through the doorway his voice was echoing through the hushed room. "Nice of you to join us, Miss Forbes."

The smirked that played on the corner of his mouth sent a white-hot burst of slightly irrational anger through her. "Sorry," she ground out, all too aware of the two dozen or so pairs of eyes on her as she walked to an empty seat.

"We were just discussing the reading Professor Hoffman assigned at the last lecture. Would you care to share your thoughts?"

The flash of humour in his eyes, the smirk that still hadn't removed itself from his face and the way the words rolled off his tongue slowly, dripping in barely hidden sarcasm told her that he thought she hadn't bothered to do the reading. Two could play at that game.

"Well, _professor_, I thought that the author made it clear he thought that historical events could be ranked in levels of importance. I think that it depends on the individual and what they determine to be important."

Klaus' smirk widened and then disappeared completely as he turned away from her. "And what say you, Miss Adams? Do you agree with Miss Forbes?"

Caroline rolled her eyes as Katrina Adams, a small, mousey girl with thick glasses and wildly curly hair flushed and stuttered under Klaus' gaze. This was going to be the longest two hours of her life.

As it turned out she was completely wrong. After spending 10 minutes discussing the reading, Klaus had them all rank the list of historical events on the projector from most important to least important and why they thought so.

She quietly read over the choices and began to scribble down answers. Before she knew it three-quarters of an hour had flown and Klaus was asking for them to write their name at the top of their paper and pass it up to the front.

Then they watched a video about the building of the pyramid and then class was over and people were shoving books in their bags and heading out the doors. She moved to join them when he calls her name. Again.

"Caroline!"

She turns; eyes narrowed suspiciously wondering what he could possibly have to say to her now.

"Can I see you for a minute please?"

The remaining half-dozen students left in the room turn to look at her as she makes her way up to the front of the room.

She waits until the rest of the class shuffles out before she hisses out a "What!"

He smirks again and her hand itches to slap the damn thing off his face. She's been in a bad mood all day and the last thing she needs is another mixed message from the seemingly bi-polar original vampire that's standing in front of her.

"I just wanted to say I was impressed with your take on the reading," he drawled casually, shuffling through some of the papers in his hands. "Did you find my drawing?" he adds lightly, placing the papers behind him on a desk and finally looking up at her, his blue eyes glinting in the light from the florescent overheads.

"You know what I found?" Caroline snaps, folding her arms. "I found out that _you_ are one of the most confusingly fickle people on the entire planet. You sneak into my house which, by the way, is beyond creepy and have the… the _audacity_ to leave another one of your romantic drawings in my room and THEN the next time I see you all you can do is act like I'm the scum of the earth in front of thirty other people. I don't know what game you're playing, Klaus but you can sure as hell bet I've had enough!"

The whole time she talks he's staring, for once not smirking at her. He's actually listening to her and it surprises her so much she cuts her rant short and glares at him, almost daring him to retaliate.

Instead of the icy cool answer she's expecting he just looks at her and says simply "Interpret it however you like, love. But there's no game being played here."

Caroline stares at him, mouth open wide in disbelief. "You are unbelievable," is all she manages before she turns away from him and speeds out of the classroom as fast as her high-heeled feet would carry her.

* * *

"I actually _hate _him, Elena," Caroline cries later as her and Elena take a run in the woods by the Salvatore house.

"He's just being Klaus, Caroline." Elena replies as she whips round the tree they use as a turning point. "He's got some twisted idea of the world and he finds it amusing to see people figure out why he does what he does. If there's one thing I've come to realise about Klaus it's that he plays games with people for no other reason than to entertain himself. The best thing you can do is not play into it, don't react."

Caroline sighed and pushed her damp hair back from her forehead as they finally come to a stop at the edge of the woods. "That's easy enough for you to say, Elena. He hasn't left you any creepy drawings lately, has he?"

"No," Elena replies with her own sigh. "But he's done his fair share of toying with my emotions. Don't let him to the same to you."

* * *

He can barely hide his surprise when later that evening Caroline waltzes into the art studio, freshly showered and smelling like lavender. She nods politely at him in greeting and picks up the canvas she started the previous night before heading to an easel in the middle of the room.

He quickly rouses himself and briskly gives out instructions before going to sit at the desk in the front of the room. Klaus had been certain she wouldn't turn up tonight, or any night for that matter, after his performance that afternoon.

The sight of Caroline, face flushed but still shining with natural beauty standing in his classroom doorway had unsettled him, even though he had known she was on his class list. His knee-jerk response had been to intimidate her as a way of gaining back some control of the situation.

He could have nearly bitten of his own tongue as her saw her demeanour change; her back straightened a little more, her hands curled into fists at her sides, she was back on the defensive. The way she had responded to his harsh greeting had also startled him. He had thought for sure she hadn't done the assigned reading.

Her outburst after he'd dismissed the class had left him certain that all progress he had made over the past week (not that he was admitting to actively trying to make progress in his relationship with Caroline) had been destroyed.

So Caroline sitting casually in front of him adding colour to her still-life had baffled him in a way he had not been baffled in quite some time. He forces himself to clear his head and gets to his feet to make his way around the classroom. He comments on some works here and there but for some reason can't bring himself to stand beside her for more than a second giving no more feedback than a sharp nod and a quiet well done.

As he walks back to his desk he thinks regretfully to himself; _Bekah would have a field day with this._


	5. Chapter 5

_When someone said count your blessings now  
For they're long gone  
I guess I just didn't know how  
I was all wrong  
But they knew better  
Still you said forever and ever  
Who knew_

_**Who Knew – P!NK**_

**Disclaimer: As usual, I do not own TVD.**

**AN: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed Paperweight so far, especially Justine! I love reading all of your feedback and opinions Feel free to leave your thoughts on this chapter! **

The Grill was pretty packed for a Monday night, Caroline thought as she weaved in and out of the tables. Most of the booths were full and there wasn't an empty stool at the bar. Glancing over she saw another crowd of people around the pool table.

When she finally made it to the counter she ordered a take-out meal for herself as her mother was on the night shift for the fiftieth time that month and wouldn't be home until after midnight. Thanking the waitress, she took her number and pushed passed a few rowdy customers to get to the restroom.

She pushed on the door and as it opened she felt her stomach drop. Tyler had his "friend" Hayley pressed up against the wall, his hands gripping her hips tightly underneath her shirt as his lips worked their way up and down her reddened neck.

The door banging open altered the couple to the intrusion and they sprang apart, Tyler's eyes going wide as he saw Caroline frozen in the doorway. He quickly wipes his lips on the back of his hand, stuttering out a "Caroline…"

Her name coming from his mouth jolts her back to reality and she staggers backwards, feeling like she'd been punched in the stomach. "I… sorry… I didn't know…" she manages, turning and walking back out into the Grill in a daze.

She hears Tyler murmur something to Hayley before following her out into the crowd of people. He's calling her name but she can barely hear over the blood pounding in her ears and she thinks she might actually be sick.

Jenny, the waitress is trying to catch her attention, the take-out she ordered clutched in her hand. She ignores her, pushing past the crowds of people willing herself not to cry before she made it out into the street. After what seems like an eternity she makes it to the door that leads to the alley and pushes it open, leaning against the wall and taking huge gulps of the bitter autumn air.

It's only a few seconds before Tyler's beside her and she tenses, hurt radiating through every part of her body.

"Caroline, I can explain," he says with a deep breath.

"How long?" she asks sharply.

"Caroline…"

"How long, Tyler?"

"Almost two months," he mumbles eventually.

The hot tears well up in her eyes again and her voice cracks. "Two months? We've only been broken up for three weeks?"

"I'm so sorry," he says, reaching out for her arm.

"Don't you dare touch me," she snaps, stepping back. "What about the Appalachians?" she demands.

Tyler doesn't say anything then, just looks at her, pleading her with his eyes and she has her answer. Her body feels cold, numb as she steps back from him. "You promised me," she says, her words coming out in a sharp gasp. "You promised me nothing happened."

"Cara-" he begins but she's already turned away from him, staggering down the pathway.

She's never felt hurt like this before, she realises later as she's curled up on her bed in the dark. Not when he actually broke up with her. Not even when she found out about Damon's compulsion. Not when her own father tortured her. Every inch of her body aches with the pain that's radiating from the centre of her chest. She feels like she's drowning, unable to breathe through the sobs that rack her body. All her insecurities come flooding back as she thinks about the last two months with Tyler. _I should have known_ is all she can think. _I should have known. _

Eventually she staggers to the shower, gripping the wall for support. She feels weak, weaker than she's felt in a long time. For a long time the hot water does little but mix with the hot tears that continue to flow down her cheeks until eventually she's cried all the tears she can. Eyes red and swollen she slowly dries herself off and makes it into her pyjamas before crawling back into bed, pulling the covers over her head and falling into an uneasy sleep.

She hears her mother come back just before one in the morning, hears the shower run and the microwave beep before her mother quietly opens the bedroom door, peers in to make sure she's ok and closes it quietly behind her, making her own way to bed. Rolling over she turn her alarm off. There's no way she's going to college tomorrow. Not after this.

* * *

Caroline doesn't wake up until her Mum pushes her bedroom door opened at just gone ten the next morning, armed with waffles, whipped cream and berries. "Tyler called me," she says simply when she sees Caroline's confused face. "Told me what you saw last night. I'm so sorry Caroline."

Caroline tries to smile but can tell she's failed when her mother's frown deepens. "Look, I've got to go to work soon" Liz says. "But I'll be home by ten tonight, ok? Call me if you need anything."

"It's ok, Mum" Caroline tries to reassure her, internally wincing at the gravelly sound of her own voice. "I'll be fine. Have a good day."

"I love you, Caroline."

"Love you too, Mum."

After taking a few bites of waffles and realising she can't stomach food right now she makes her way down to the basement and into the mini fridge where she keeps her own stash of blood bags. Taking one up to her room she flicks on the TV in the corner, trying to drown out the noise in her head as she sucks down some B+ and finally feels her body relax.

* * *

Later that night Klaus is sitting in the art studio, trying to pretend like he's not looking up at the door every few seconds to see if she's arrived yet. It's been a little over two weeks since his little spat with Caroline and it was as if they'd both drawn an invisible line in the sand that neither was willing to cross.

He'd not spoken more than a few sentences to her. Rarely calling on her in class and only giving bits of advice on her drawing techniques here and there. Despite this, she had continued to show up to every workshop and to every art class, never missing one. She was one of the last to arrive and the first to leave but she was still there. When she hadn't been at today's workshop his stomach flipped but he pushed it aside. She was fine. But now, having not shown up at the art class either... he was worried.

He had told himself for weeks he was being ridiculous. His silly infatuation with Caroline Forbes kept him entertained, he always enjoyed a challenge and she was certainly a challenge. She was feisty, smart and attractive. She refused to be impressed by any of his gestures and only seemingly resigned to politeness after they'd discovered the death of him would cause the death of all of them.

She hadn't been entertainment for a long time now, though. He had a slight suspicion that her honesty to him the night of his mother's welcome ball had crushed any sense of superiority to her that he may or may not have felt before.

From there on in, his need to be near her, to get to know her, had grown overwhelmingly. He put up a good façade, acting cold and aloof when necessary. But the truth was every time he sees her his breath catches in his throat. Every time she shares a titbit of information about herself with his heart flutters in a way it has not in almost a thousand years. Not since her…

* * *

"You've been sulking for weeks now, brother" Rebekah had pointed out that morning over breakfast. "Have you finally come to your sense about that ridiculous job of yours?"

"I thought we'd agreed we weren't going to discuss my job anymore, Rebekah." Klaus sighed tiredly, lowering the newspaper and looking at her.

"Oh my God, it's Caroline isn't it?" she scoffed. "Please Nicklaus; I haven't seen you so stuck on someone since Tati…" she trailed of, realising her mistake and glancing at her brother apprehensively.

"Since Tatia," Klaus finished for her calmly, turning back to his paper. "I am well aware of my feelings, Rebekah. Both past and present."

"Nik I just meant…" Rebekah began again. "I meant that look at what happened last time. You get hurt too easily when it comes to matters of the heart, brother. I don't want to see you so troubled again."

Klaus said nothing but rose from the table, snatching up the paper and stalking upstairs to his room to get ready for work.

* * *

The sound of one of his students dropping a paintbrush startled Klaus out of his remembrance. A little shakily he got to his feet and announced that he had an appointment he needed to leave for and if they wished to stay longer they may. Ignoring their questioning gazes, he picked up his keys from the desk and his coat from the chair, tucking it under his arm as he made his way to the car.


	6. Chapter 6

_I don't want to leave you behind  
I don't want to leave you tonight  
And I know it's hard but life's a bit like that  
When it pulls you down and stabs you in the back  
And I know it's hard, we'll get through this I know_

_**Don't Wanna Leave You – Scouting for Girls**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries and I cry about it every night.**

**AN: First of all, I know it's been **_**months **_**since I last posted but in that time I have quit my job, packed all of my belongings, moved from Australia to the UK and started a new job, so in all fairness I have been busy but it's no excuse to leave you waiting for so long! If anyone is still reading… thank you so much and I'm sorry if this chapter is a bit up and down… I've gotten a bit rusty at this writing thing. Big love to you all xx **

Klaus pulls into Caroline's driveway and shuts off the engine. He sits for a minute, hands gripping the steering wheel tightly as his body hums with nervous anticipation. This is ridiculous, he thinks to himself after a moment. He's a thousand year old hybrid. He should not be anxious about checking on the safety of one of his students. Or at least that's what he tells himself as he pushed the door open and makes his way up the porch steps.

* * *

Caroline doesn't hear the first knock on the door because the music on the stereo is up way too loud. She's dancing around the kitchen with a wine glass in one hand and a wooden spoon covered in chocolate cake batter in the other. The knocks get louder and she finally hears them and figures its either Bonnie or Elena coming to check up on her. She calls out "It's open!" and turns back to the mixing bowl cringing as the mixture makes an ominous glugging sound.

She hears footsteps behind her and starts to explain "Sorry, I turned my phone o-," as she turns towards her friends. Except it's not her friends standing under the arch in the kitchen, its Klaus.

"Oh. Hi?" she says, frowning in confusion.

"Hi," he replies, taking a step towards her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."

"No, it's fine," she says pouring herself another glass of wine. "Want some?"

His eyebrows raise in surprise and it's a couple of seconds before he manages to nod. He lets his eyes wander over Caroline's body as she reaches up to grab a clean glass from a shelf in the cabinet. She fills it up too quickly, wine sloshing over the side and dripping down her hand onto the floor.

"Oops," she giggles, handing him the glass. Its then he notices the slightly glazed look in her eyes, the dark circles under them and the fact that she is quickly passing tipsy and hurdling straight into the flat-out drunk category.

He takes a sip, watching her over the rim of the glass. "Are you ok, Caroline?" he asks tentatively.

"No. I'm not," she answers, falsely cheerful, turning back to stir her cake mix. "This stupid thing isn't working.

He glances at the mixture in the bowl. "What exactly is it you are making?"

"A chocolate sponge cake…"

He raises his eye brows. "Is it supposed to be edible?"

She rolls her eyes so far back in her head that he's surprised they don't fall out. "Erm, yes."

"Right, well you might want to think about taking the bits of eggshell out then?"

"If you're so smart you make the cake then, she retaliates, shoving the wooden spoon at Klaus' chest.

"Fine," he says taking the spoon off of her. "Some things are best left to the professionals after all, sweetheart."

* * *

An hour and a half later and the Forbes house is filled with the aroma of the freshly baked chocolate cake Klaus has just turned out onto the cooling rack and Caroline's flicking through the channels on tv, sipping on the tonic water Klaus had managed to switch out for the wine 45 minutes ago.

"That smells delicious," she admits as he walks back into the lounge. Caroline's curled up under a blanket, her head resting on the arm of the sofa, she looks exhausted and he feels a tug in his chest as she sighs quietly, her eyelashes brushing her cheeks gently as she blinks. "How'd you learn how to bake a cake anyway?"

He chuckles softly, "When you've been around as long as I have, love, you learn give anything and everything a go."

"So maybe in a few hundred years I'll finally be able to make a decent cake, then,"

"A few _thousand_ years, maybe," he says with a wink and she reaches out and swats him on the arm.

"Mean," she says sleepily.

"Why don't you get some sleep, Caroline? You look exhausted."

"Mmmm," she mummers, eyes already closed.

* * *

When Caroline wakes up the next morning she's tucked up on the couch, a glass of water and a pack of aspirin on the table beside her. Struggling to sit up she shakes her head and regrets it instantly as pain radiates around her forehead. "Ugh," she says swallowing, wincing at the dryness of her throat and the taste of wine lingering.

She takes the pills, and stands up slowly, surveying the kitchen. It's spotless; a pile of clean dishes stacked in the drainer by the sink and an amazing looking chocolate cake is on the bench. It's covered in lashings of chocolate frosting and decorated with the fresh strawberry's her mother had left in the fridge.

Casting her mind back to last night she remembers Klaus arriving and taking over in the kitchen, sending her to sit on the couch. She grabs her phone off the counter and switches it on.

_Four missed calls – Elena_

_Three missed calls – Bonnie_

"Shit," she swears, hitting the redial button, preparing to make her excuses.

* * *

A slice of chocolate cake in her hand, Caroline hesitates outside of Klaus' office. Finally she gains the courage to knock and she's barely tapped on the door when she hears his voice calling out a polite "Come in."

His head is bent over some papers he must be grading and it takes him a second to look up. When he does he drops his pen in surprise.

"Caroline, what are you doing here?" he says, almost lost for words.

"I just wanted to say thank you for last night," she said, setting the plate down on his desk.

"I didn't do anything," he protested leaning back in his chair, resting his hands on the arms, drinking in the sight of a slightly hungover Caroline.

"You were there," Caroline says simply. Then, after a pause, "Tyler cheated on me. With Hayley. I just found out."

Klaus' hands tighten on the armrests of his chair so tightly he feels the plastic start to buckle underneath his grip, rage building up inside of him. "That bastard," he spits out, shooting to his feet. "That lying, cheating bastard! I'll kill him!"

"Klaus!" Caroline says, alarmed at his sudden display of anger. "It's ok! I'm ok!"

"I can't believe he would do something like that, Caroline. I had no idea, I'm so sorry."

"Why are you apologising?" she asks taking a step towards him. "This has nothing to do with you, or anything you've done."

He sighs, calming down somewhat. "I just can't believe someone would be unfaithful to a woman like you,"

Caroline blushed under the intensity of his gaze that's focused on her. Quickly, she shakes her head and changes the subject.

"Are you going to the homecoming game this Saturday night?"

Klaus blinks, taking a moment to transition from one conversation to the next.

"I'm not sure," he admits. "Are you cheering?"

"Yeah," she says quietly, "Then there's a party at one of the guys house. It's going to be huge apparently. Everyone's going."

Why she's telling him this, Caroline has no idea. She's so fed up with the up-and-down feeling she gets when she's around Klaus. One moment she hates him with such an intensity it scares even her and the next he's baking her chocolate cake and taking care of her and she sees tenderness to the original vampire that she'd never expect to see.

She hates that he makes her feel this way but he looks at her with this funny gaze in his eyes, his head tilted to the side, as if he's always trying to figure her out and something inside her melts a little, leaving a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach every time she turns away from him.

"Maybe I'll see you there, then?" she says simply, hating herself for the edge of hopefulness in her voice.

"Maybe," he repeats, smiling softly at her.

She steps backwards, towards the door and he's there in a flash, opening it for her.

"Thank you again for last night," she says as she turns to leave.

"It was my pleasure, love. My pleasure," he murmurs, dangerously close to her ear. She feels his breath on her ear and she forces back a shiver as she walks away, feeling his gaze on her back until she turns the corner, out of sight.


	7. Chapter 7

_Some days I feel like I'm wrong when I'm right  
Your mind is playing tricks on you, my dear  
'Cause though the truth may vary  
This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore_

_**Little Talks – Of Monsters and Men**_

**Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own TVD. I just own the plot. **

**AN: Please read and review! xx**

Eighteen months ago, Caroline thought bitterly, she would have killed to be at a college party. She would have loved to be surrounded by topless guys drinking what should have been lethal amounts of beer while dancing to whatever shitty songs are loaded on the host's iPod. But tonight, she was sitting on the couch in a middle of a frat party full of idiots who were doing exactly that and she would have killed to be _anywhere _else.

Her bad mood had started hours earlier, before the homecoming game (which they had lost in a spectacular embarrassing fashion), when Elena and Bonnie were crowded in her room, supposedly helping her get ready for "the big night".

And ok, Elena had curled her hair to perfection and Bonnie had brought over this really amazing hair ribbon thing but it had all gone downhill very quickly once she'd mentioned the 'K' word. It had honestly just slipped out. They mentioned Tyler and her going AWOL several nights before and she _may _have mentioned the fact he's burst into her house, pale cheeks flushed and taken care of her drunken ass and made her a chocolate freaking cake.

Well the floodgates had opened after that and all she can hear is Elena agreeing with Bonnie when she says softly to Caroline that "I don't know, Care, it just seems like you're… bored with us or something."

She saw red at that comment and screeched something about having been stuck in this godforsaken town for almost nineteen years and goddamn it some days it felt like she was never going to get out.

"Maybe that's why you're holding onto this Klaus thing," Elena suggested. "You see him as a way of escaping."

The half pitying, half judgemental looks on her best friends faces was enough for her to grab her already packed bag and storm out of her own house, two hours before she was even due at game.

So now she was sitting here.

All by herself.

Until some guy plonks himself down next to her and puts his sweaty arm around her shoulders, breathing his heavily beer-scented breath all over her hair and she is actually really proud of the fact that she doesn't snap his neck then and there.

Instead she politely excuses herself and compels the tool to "fuck off and leave her alone," when he tries to stop her from leaving. Caroline leaves the room and heads into another, complete with disco lights whirling overhead, immediately regretting her decision when she sees Tyler and Hayley wrapped around each other on the dance floor and Elena, Bonnie and the Salvatore brothers gossiping over by the only exit.

She tries to walk past without saying anything and everything goes according to plan until Damon says offhandedly, "Great game. Shame your new favourite hybrid wasn't there to see you cheer."

"For Christ's sake!" she screams at him whirling around, all sense of self-control long gone "What the fuck is your problem!? Just because I'm not happy to be stuck in Mystic Falls for another year doesn't mean you have to make it even more of hellhole than it already is! Take your head out of your ass for a second Damon and have a look around because this world doesn't revolve around you and your pathetic excuse of a life!"

Her friends look taken back and she takes a step backwards before she can apologise for her outburst. Spinning around she heads back to the room she came from, head down and tears burning in her eyes. Suddenly she slams into something very hard and stumbles; the only thing saving her from falling onto the floor is a certain hand wrapping around her wrist and pulling her back up into stability.

"Going somewhere, sweetheart?" he drawls in his perfect British accent, standing there looking all too pleased with himself; like he knows his button-down shirt is tight in all the right places and his black jeans make him look miles taller than he actually is.

He's standing there in the middle of this hellish party looking like he's walked off the cover of a GQ magazine, looking so fucking perfect she could kiss him.

And maybe it's the three cups of beer she's had, or maybe it's the fact she knows she has at least five pairs of curious, judgemental eyes on her that gives her the extra courage to actually do what she's been dying to do for longer than she'd care to admit. Either way, she wraps her hand around the hand on her wrist and tugs his body in closer to hers before ghosting her lips of the shell of his ear and whispers "Shut up and just get me the hell out of here."

* * *

Her phone's going off before they even get to the end of the driveway, her hand still locked tightly around a mystified Klaus'.

"Ah Caroline?" he says as they reach the other side of the street where his car is miraculously parked. "Is there something we need to talk about?"

"I don't want to talk, Klaus! I don't want to think. I just want to have some fun." Caroline replies, digging around in her bag for phone, pulling it out.

"What kind of fun?" he questions, his voice an octave high than usual.

She raises her eyebrow at him, "What kind do you think?"

His mouth forms a deliciously cute 'O' shape for a split second before he's launched himself at her, pushing her into door of his car. "Are you sure?" he growls, looking physically pained by having to ask the question.

"Positive," she sighs, her eyes trained on his perfectly moist lips, wondering what they'd feel like on hers. And suddenly she doesn't have to wonder anymore because he _has_ pressed those perfectly moist lips on hers and he's kissing her like he's afraid at any second she's going to push him off.

The cool metal doorhandle is pressing into her lower back, he's pressing into her so hard and her legs are starting to get shaky from the sensations he's causing to race through her body. He tastes like scotch and smells like parchment and oil-based paints and she's so attracted to him right now, it's making her head spin around and around. She feels dizzy in the best way and decides she doesn't want to stop kissing him now, or possibly ever, because it feels so good.

The shrill sound of her ringtone pierces through the otherwise silent night and he pulls away from her lips to whisper a husky "Turn it off." She tries and fails to unlock her phone with her trembling hands while he's pressing wet kisses up and down her neck, distracting her to the point where she actually forgets what she was doing until it goes off again. And again. And again.

He wrenches it from her hands and tosses it into the middle of the street where it falls silent with an ominous crunch. "Klaus!" she gasps placing her hands on his shoulders and trying to push him off so she can retrieve it.

"Forget it, love," murmurs in her ear. "I'll buy you a new one. A better one. Tomorrow. Right now there are some more pressing issues at hand."

She snickers, half because she can feel one of those "pressing issues" against her thigh and half because only Klaus could talk like a politician while doing magical, magical things with lips.

Somehow, and don't ask her how because she couldn't tell you, they get back to his place fully clothed. It takes only seconds from the door being pushed opened and slammed shut for him to unlace her top and rip it off, though.

She manages to mutter a quick "Rebekah," into his ear and He makes an "mmm" sound as she reaches down to unbuckle his belt.

"Sleepover," He manages at last and with the last of her worries banished from her mind, she allows him to race her up the stairs and toss her onto his bed so he can finally have his wicked, wicked way with her.


	8. Chapter 8

_Darling you're with me, always around me.  
Only love, only love.  
Darling I feel you, under my body.  
Only love, only love.  
Give me shelter, or show me heart  
Come on love, come on love.  
Watch me fall apart, watch me fall apart._

_**Only Love – Ben Howard**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD and I still cry about it every night. **

**A/N: Two chapters in two days! Wow! I know, weird right? But I kind of feel as though this chapter and the last go together. They're kind of the end of the first part of the story and the beginning of the second. I hope you've enjoyed them both. Please review and let me know what you think. xx**

Caroline Forbes does not do causal sex. She doesn't do one-night stands or friends with benefits or just-this-once type scenarios. She doesn't do awkward morning-after situations and she most certainly doesn't wake up regretting what happened between the sheets the night before.

So maybe that's why the inescapable feeling of guilt rushes over her before her eyes even open or maybe she just feels guilty because she doesn't make a move to leave. In fact, she doesn't do anything other than shuffle an inch closer to the sleeping hybrid.

She can feel his breath on her neck and his arm is wrapped around her waist, making it impossible for her leave even if she wanted to. Which she doesn't. Because even though she feels guilty, she also feels good. Like really good. It's a feeling she hasn't felt in forever and goddamn it, she's missed it.

She remembers every tantalising detail of the previous evening. She remembers the way he kissed her up against his car to the way he traced this magical pattern into the skin on her hips while they laid there afterwards in complete silence. She remembers the look on his face when he finally got her undressed (which was like his eyes couldn't believe what they were seeing) and she remembers the flash of hurt that crossed his face when she reminded him that they were just having fun.

And ok, maybe she could have picked a better time to have said what she did but she was sort of freaking out because she was sleeping with her professor (even though it was Klaus) and it kind of just slipped out right as he was slipping into… well, her.

But the look only lasted a millisecond and then he's smirking down at her and murmuring huskily in her ear "whatever helps you sleep at night, darling" because it's like he knows that her whole body is setting itself on fire and she's already thinking about the next time that they're going to get to do this.

She's still considering all this when she feels him stir behind her and he loosens his grip on her enough so she can roll free of his arms. She thinks about getting up and leaving but his bed is really comfortable and to tell you the truth she doesn't _want _to leave. So instead she makes herself comfortable, closes her eyes and drifts off back to sleep.

When she wakes up again the room in significantly lighter and Klaus' bed is significantly emptier than it was just a couple of hours before. This time it's awkwardness instead of guilt that rushes over her because she's at _his_ house and he's left _her_. She's just trying to figure out what in the hell she's supposed to do when Klaus waltzes back into the room dripping wet, wearing nothing but a towel that is wrapped so loosely around his waist that all she'd have to do is…

Caroline shakes her head in an (unsuccessful) attempt to focus on the matter at hand. He's wearing that infuriating smirk again, like he knows exactly how he's causing her to feel.

"Sleep well, love?" he drawls, raising his eyebrows in the direction of the clock on his bedside table. She's surprised to see that it's gone eleven and hastens to make some sort of excuse as to why she's hung around for this long.

"Yeah well blame it on the gazillion thread count these sheets have," is the best she can come up with and he's grinning at her and she knows that he knows _exactly _what she was thinking.

"Last night was…" she begins her first ever attempt at the morning after discussion. It doesn't get very far though, on account on the fact that Klaus steams straight past the awkwardness and gets straight to the point.

"Was just two consenting adults having _fun_," he finishes. She frowns, because she knows she should feel relieved but instead she feels a little… disappointed? Her disappointment is short-lived, however, because he questioningly adds with a wicked smile "Fun that those two consenting adults are free to continue to have, as long as they both want?"

"Fuck yes," she groans because they could either discuss this like mature adults or go back to ignoring whatever it was that was going on between them and she sure knows what she'd prefer to be doing right now.

She's not even the slightest bit surprised when he drops his towel and launches himself onto her another round of what can only be described as (extremely) hot hybrid sex.

They're still lying on his bed an hour later when they both hear the front door open and Rebekah drop her keys on the side table before letting out a disgusted screech. "Niklaus Mikaelson you get down here and pick up this underwear _right now_!"

They look at each other stunned for a moment before Klaus leaps up and pulls on a pair of jeans at breakneck speed. Caroline was mortified. She had completely forgotten that in their haste to get each other naked the night before, they'd left a trail of clothes, shoes and underwear from the front door, all the way up the stairs and into Klaus' room. And now _Rebekah_, of all people had walked in to find the proof of their debauchery scattered all over her otherwise pristine house.

Klaus is back upstairs in a matter of seconds, throwing the armful of clothes onto his bed and looks at her regretfully, like he knows that it's over. Their night of uninterrupted, unjudged _fun _was over and it was back to reality and back to explaining their actions to people who though they were owed explanations to things that were really none of their business.

"Elena, I'm not apologising to Damon, ok?" Caroline sighs that night in her friends lounge room "He goes around acting the entire world revolves around him and it's about time someone called him out on his bullshit."

Elena looks more than a little put-out at her refusal but to be honest Caroline couldn't care less about Damon Salvatore. She does however care about her best friends, which is why she drove around to Elena's house and asked her to call Bonnie over so they could sort everything out.

"Yeah, I admit it, sometimes I hate being stuck in Mystic Falls. But I'm not just going to up and leave overnight," she'd explained gently. "We made an agreement. To stick around for another year to make sure that everything's ok. And I fully intend to do that but I need you guys to know that _one day_ I will be leaving this town. And as much as I'll miss it, I can't promise that I'll be coming back."

She arrives home at gone nine that night and she's absolutely exhausted. To the point that she thinks her eyeballs may just pop out of her head. She unlocks the door and makes her way up to her room and stops dead in the doorway.

There's a package, lying on her bed accompanied by a letter. Caroline opens the package first because half of her already knows what it is and she's right. It's a brand spanking new iPhone and she sees that it's already been charged and loaded with most of her friend's phone numbers.

The letter, however, she hesitates at. Something inside her tells her that this knife-point her and Klaus are balancing on is about to fall and one way or another, things are about to change.

Finally, she takes a deep breath and plucks up the courage to open it. Two bits of parchment fall out and she picks up the one with his handwriting on it first.

_Dearest Caroline, _

It reads.

_Somehow, communicating with you always comes back to this. A letter on a piece of parchment and a picture I've drawn for you. Maybe it's because I'm afraid (yes, afraid) that if I try and tell you how I feel to your face, you won't stay to listen. You'll just walk away and to be honest with you I'm not sure how many more times I can cope with that happening. _

_Last night… I can't even begin to describe how amazing it was, Caroline. I'm not just referring to the sex. I'm referring to the fact that it was the first time in god knows how long I've seen you do something for yourself. I've told you before that the world is now your proverbial oyster. It's yours to do with what you like. Last night, I could see in your eyes that it was the first time you were seeing that for yourself. _

_There's more to life than Mystic Falls, Caroline. There are places I've been to that are so full of life and art and genuine beauty that words, written or otherwise, don't do them justice. I've seen a thousand sunsets and sunrises in a thousand different countries but each is just as special and unique as the one before and the one after. _

_I suppose what I'm trying to say is that, when you're ready and if you're willing, I hope that you'll let me take you to experience some of these things for yourself. Either as friends or as something more - I'm leaving that decision completely up to you. _

_You deserve to see everything good that the world has to offer and I swear that if you'll let me, I'll prove it to you. _

_Always yours, _

_Klaus_


End file.
